President Obama signed “The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009″ into law on February 17, 2009. The law includes a new consumer
tax deduction to purchase a motor vehicle during
2009.
Lets break it
down:
Provides a new tax
deduction on 2009 income taxes for “qualified motor vehicle
taxes”.
Qualified motor vehicle taxes include any
State or Local Sales or Excise tax imposed on the purchase of a
qualified motor vehicle.
Qualified motor vehicles
include passenger automobiles or light trucks with a weight rating not
exceeding 8,500 pounds.
Applies to NEW vehicles
only.
Deduction allowed even if you don’t itemize
deductions.
Limit on Price: New vehicle price
cannot exceed $49,500.
Income Limit: Phased out for
taxpayers making $125k singly or $250k
jointly.
Effective date: PURCHASES FROM FEB 17,2009
- JAN 1, 2010
There is no
restriction on the type or car and it does not have to be a Hybrid.
Unlike the worker and housing tax credits, the car buyer tax break is
an income tax deduction. This means that it would reduce your taxable
income and hence net tax liability. So the higher your tax rate, the
more you will benefit.
Senator Barbara
Mikulski is author of the amendment and here are the relevant details
from the official press release (based on the original Senate
proposal):
"The American automobile industry is currently one of the
biggest drivers of the U.S. economy. Six million jobs are at stake in
the American car industry and one out of every 10 jobs in America is
auto-related. A collapse of a major U.S. automaker, such as GM, Ford or
Chrysler, would further erode the American economy, given the huge
network of suppliers, dealers, and other businesses and communities
that would be affected. [This] amendment is not about bailouts. It's
about jobs, jobs, jobs. The amendment is
simple. If you buy a new passenger car, mini-van, or light truck by
December 31st of 2009, you will get a tax deduction for your sales or
excise tax and the interest on your loan. A family would save about
$1,500 on a $25,000 car, not counting the additional incentives from
dealers. This amendment also helps state governments. States rely on
tax revenue from new car sales. In my home state and many other states
the sales tax is around 6 percent, so on a $25,000 car the state gets
$1,500 in revenue. New car sales are down millions per year from their
averages. This means states are losing billions when they already are
struggling. As people buy new cars states' tax revenues will
increase. This amendment is a big deal to families because a car is
the second biggest purchase most families make. My amendment is
targeted. Families with an income of more than $250,000 a year are
ineligible. Cars costing more than $49,500 also are ineligible. This
amendment also helps the environment because it gets more people into
new cars and new cars are cleaner and more fuel efficient than old
cars. There are 20,000 new car dealerships nationwide. They
employ a million people. Most people don't realize that dealers employ
an average of 53 people in sales, mechanics, and administrative
positions. I visited car dealerships in Maryland and heard from these
employees. Well, I say let's put money where it matters - where it
creates jobs. That's why we need this amendment for creating jobs, for
consumers, and for the auto industry that is such a driver of our
country's economy - so we can get America rolling
again."
An Illustration Of
How The Tax Deduction Works
Let’s look at
a quick example of how the tax deduction would work in the real world.
Let’s say you buy a new car for $20,000 this year, and had a trade-in
of $9,000. Typically states would tax the difference between the new
car and the trade, which in this instance would be
$11,000.
At a tax rate of 6.5%, that would
mean your deduction in this case would be about $715. Tax rates vary by
state, so your deduction will be based on the tax rate in your
state.
If you are buying a $20,000 car
with no trade, you would reduce your taxable income by $1300 (at our
example 6.5% tax rate).
Please consult
your tax accountant or CPA for further details.